The invention relates generally to devices for moving large, heavy objects, and more specifically, to a device for moving a large roll of paper from a pallet to a desired location having a surface raised above the floor.
Printers used in industrial and commercial applications, such as in paper mills and warehouses, often use a large paper roll having a hollow core as a starting material to print high volumes of letters and forms. These paper rolls are typically over three feet in diameter, and each one can weigh several hundred pounds or more. It is difficult, if not impossible, for an individual to move a roll of paper of this size without the use of powered machinery and without damaging the paper.
Large rolls of paper are usually handled or transported in a vertical position with the aid of the ordinary two-wheeled factory truck or by simply rolling the roll across the floor. Handling rolls of paper in this manner can cause considerable damage to the exposed paper along the outer surface of the roll, especially the outer edges of the roll. Because of the damage to the end of the roll, it is often necessary to cut off and throw away the outer layers of the paper. Sometimes the damage to a roll of paper is so great that a significant part of the roll is rendered entirely unfit for its intended use, resulting in a substantial loss of money and resources. No satisfactory means for allowing an individual to handle a single roll of paper has been available. It would be desirable to provide a convenient means and a method of handling and transporting a large roll of paper from a pallet to a desired location in a less cumbersome manner without requiring lifting of the roll or allowing the roll to contact the floor.
Attempts have been made to provide a device to facilitate the handling and transporting of large rolls of paper. U.S. Pat. No. 1,536,611 describes a truck skid for handling large rolls of paper. The truck skid provides a skid or an incline onto which a roll of paper must be moved in order to load the roll on the truck skid. Rolling the paper up the skid or incline requires a significant amount of physical effort by an individual. Furthermore, the truck skid is not configured to receive a roll of paper from a raised surface such as a pallet without raising or lowering the roll. Several of the truck skids described in U.S. Pat. No. 1,536,611 cannot be stacked on top of each other or otherwise arranged to save space when not in use and it would be inefficient and expensive to store and provide an inventory of several of the truck skids loaded with paper.
Thus, there is a need in the art for an improved device and an improved method of transporting a roll of paper that allows an individual to effectively and safely move a roll. There is a further need in the art for a device and a method that does not require lifting of or lowering of the roll of paper and that prevents the roll from contacting the floor. There is also a need for an improved device and method that is less cumbersome than prior devices and methods, that allow several devices loaded with paper to be stored in a minimal amount of floor space in order to provide a ready inventory of rolls of paper and that allows several empty, unloaded devices to be stacked one on top of another to save floor space.
The present invention is an improved roll cart that can be used for moving and transporting large rolls of paper. Through a unique configuration of its parts, in particular the location of a pivot and the use of a combination braking/locking mechanism, the device allows an individual to safely and easily move a roll of paper without damaging the paper, without the use of hydraulics or other complex machinery and without contacting the floor or other surfaces detrimental to the roll of paper. The device of the present invention can be operated by an individual of average strength to safely move a roll of paper without the use of hydraulics, electricity and other non-human power sources.
The roll cart includes a frame having means for allowing the frame to roll across a surface; a carriage having a first projection proximate a first end of the carriage and a second projection proximate a second end of the carriage; means for pivotally connecting the carriage to the frame; and a combination locking/braking mechanism including a braking portion and a locking portion. The combination locking/braking mechanism is configured such that when the brake portion of the combination locking/braking mechanism is engaged, the locking portion of the combination locking/braking mechanism is disengaged. On the other hand, when the locking portion of the combination locking/braking mechanism is engaged, the braking portion of the combination locking/braking mechanism is disengaged.
Stated otherwise, the roll cart includes a rolling frame that supports a pivoting carriage for holding and stabilizing a large roll of paper. The pivoting carriage is pivotally attached to the frame so that the carriage can pivot within the frame to allow a roll of paper to be rolled onto or off of the carriage with minimal effort and without lifting or damaging the roll of paper. The carriage supports and stabilizes a large roll of paper, desirably greater than two feet in diameter. The pivot point is strategically placed on the carriage so that the carriage normally rests on the frame in a gravitationally stable and substantially horizontal resting position. From this horizontal resting position, the carriage can pivot to a gravitationally unstable, tilted position wherein an inclined surface, stop or other projection at one end of the carriage pivots to below or flush with the top surface of the roll cart. The pivoting of the carriage is caused by rolling the paper roll onto the inclined surface, stop or other projection at the end of the carriage. Thus, a roll of paper can be loaded onto the carriage without lifting or damaging the roll of paper by rolling paper roll over the inclined surface, stop or projection, thereby causing the carriage to pivot so that the stop pivots below or flush with the frame. This feature minimizes damage to the outside of the roll of paper and minimizes the amount of effort required to roll the paper roll onto the carriage.
The roll cart can be securely maintained stationary with respect to a surface by engaging a brake. When the brake is engaged, rolling of the device is impeded and the carriage pivots freely to allow loading and unloading of a roll of paper by rolling the roll on to or off the carriage. When the brake is disengaged, a locking mechanism engages the carriage to prevent the carriage from tilting. When the brake is disengaged, the device is free to roll and the carriage is restricted from pivoting by the locking portion of the mechanism. This combination braking/locking feature is an alternate locking or braking feature that prevents the carriage from pivoting when the device is rolling, prevents inadvertent unloading of a roll and facilitates the safe transportation of large heavy rolls of paper. The roll cart can also be used for moving other objects besides rolls of paper, such as spools of wire, rolls of plastic film, and so forth.
The present invention further provides a method for moving a roll of paper that involves rolling the device to a raised surface upon which a roll of paper is located (such as a pallet), engaging the brake portion of the combination braking/locking mechanism, rolling a roll of paper from the raised surface onto one end of the device, tipping the carriage by further rolling the roll of paper over the leading edge of the carriage and onto the carriage and pivoting the carriage back to a stable position. The braking portion of the combination braking/locking mechanism can then be disengaged, thus, engaging the locking portion of the mechanism and preventing the carriage from pivoting. The device is now loaded with a roll of paper and can be safely transported and rolled to a desired location. To unload the roll of paper, the brake is engaged and the lock is disengaged thereby allowing the roll of paper to be rolled off the carriage and desirably on to a device having a similarly raised surface.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a roll cart and a method for handling and transporting rolls of paper and other objects, especially when of similar shape, from the raised surface of a pallet to a cart to a printer without lifting the roll or allowing the roll to contact the floor and with a minimum of effort and damage to the object being handled.
It is also an object of the invention to provide a roll cart that is capable of being stacked when empty and stored in a minimal amount of space and that can be arranged next to other such loaded devices in a minimal amount of floor space.
The various aspects of the present invention may be more clearly understood and appreciated from a review of the following detailed description of the disclosed embodiments and by reference to the appended drawings and claims.